Glasgow, Blackie & Son, 1855. Thick, large 8vo (24.4 x 15.3 cm). Frontispiece portrait of Linnaeus, engraved title with large, pictorial vignette, letterpress title, xii, 720 pp.; 240 text illustrations, 41 plates, of which 22 [plates 19-40] originally hand-coloured. Contemporary polished half calf. Spine with five raised, gilt-ornamented bands; compartments rich gilt with floral vignettes and borders, and with a burgundy morocco label with gilt title. Salmon endpapers; edges sprinkled red.

A well-preserved, attractively bound copy of the first edition with additional coloured plates of this beautifully illustrated work by the British botanist Willam Rhind (1797-1894). The text-illustrations are very good, too. Arguably the best copy currently available on the internet. Plates 14 and 23 bound after p. 128. Light spotting and toning to a few uncoloured plates, as often; otherwise, a very good, clean, unmarked copy. Especially the binding is luxurious and in an unusually good condition. Cat. BM(NH) p. 1639 [listing an 1862 edition only]; Nissen BBI, 1628 [not mentioning coloured plates]; Pritzel 7589.